


Breaking Free

by RinzlersGhost



Category: Twilight (Movies), Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:40:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22204246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RinzlersGhost/pseuds/RinzlersGhost
Summary: After the incident in Washington with the Cullen's, Marcus contemplates what could have been the fall of the Volturi, and decides to pay some homage to his roots.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 11





	Breaking Free

**Author's Note:**

> Before you read this, you should know that this kind of has an open ending. I was planning on taking it a step farther and actually writing Marcus finding a new mate, but writer's block hit me and a bunch of other issues are going on, and I just really feel like it should stay open ended because then it leaves it to you (the reader's) interpretation. By all means, if you want to piggyback off of it, just shoot me a message.

Marcus was quiet, his fingers steepled together as he leaned forward on his throne. He wasn’t necessarily sure that their trip to Washington State had been needed. Aro hadn’t thought it necessary to relay the details of Alice’s vision to either him or Caius, merely bringing any thoughts of entertaining a fight to an end. His words had helped sway Aro away from battle, despite Caius’ urge to leap into it.  
It had been the first time in centuries that conflict had demanded their attention so ardently. They had been used to sitting behind their castle walls and dealing with issues in an alabaster-made room, carved to their specifications. Even the throne beneath him paid homage to the man he used to be.  
If Alice’s vision was enough to sway Aro to reconsider, then Marcus surmised that Aro had seen the fall of the Volturi. The Cullen’s had found allies and recruited them to stand at their sides, knowing that the child that belonged to Edward and Isabella was not truly an immortal child. The Volturi weren’t outnumbered. They hadn’t been out-gifted, for lack of a better word, on that battlefield. But it was true enough that none of them had seen combat in decades. Their Elite Guard handled most of their combat within trials if it ever got rowdy.  
“You seem pensive.” Caius murmured, passing by the throne room to see Marcus sitting there. Marcus’ eyes flickered to Caius briefly.  
“We both know the only reason Aro backed off in conflict with the Cullen’s was because that he saw the fall of the Volturi in Alice’s vision.”  
“We cannot know that.”  
“And what else would have swayed him not to fight? We held the advantage in number and gift. They only had a cause to rally and fight for, Caius. Have we sat behind these castle walls for so long that we have forgotten who we are, that we have forgotten what we are?”  
“Your point is that we are vampires, Marcus?” Caius asked.  
“We were gods in human flesh that walked on this Earth. We were gods, Caius. Who bests the gods?”  
“Traditionally, man.” Caius replied, turning away. He paused though, giving some thought to it before turning back to Marcus. “You really think that our roots matter that much? And if so, are you planning to do something about it? Go behind Aro’s back, really?”  
“Like Aro will notice I’m gone.” Marcus replied, giving Caius a knowing look. “I’m not here remember?”  
“Hey, I’m not the one who said that. Though, I think him dragging you out of the castle and getting you some fresh air obviously did you some good.” Caius replied, leaning against the threshold. “Where do you intend to go?”  
“There’s an old compound in Florence. My sire’s compound.” Marcus replied. “I think I’ll start there.”  
-  
Marcus hadn’t dwelt on his change in centuries. He vaguely remembered his human life and pieced together the rest through the bits and pieces that humans had recorded. He circled the abandoned compound, pushing aside the overgrowth to break into the compound. He stopped in the center hall, taking a deep breath, all the old scents coming back to him.  
His sire had been Clan Rosso, ages ago, before vampires were strictly organized into covens. In a way, he supposed they were the first coven. Gemma was the daughter of Nyx, created a vampire indirectly by a feud of the goddesses Nyx and Selene. She married Viktor Rosso and they adopted two children over their lifetime, a boy child named Michael, and a girl child named Sulpicia.  
Michael married a mortal woman and had two children, Sabine and Pietro, hybrid vampire-human children. Sulpicia had gone missing to turn up immortal years later. Aro married her soon after her rediscovery. Marcus had been turned by Gemma, still bleeding out in the throes of a battle that he’d nearly lost.  
It wasn’t long after his turn, give or take a decade or so, that Marcus turned Caius, known then as Caesar after he’d found him bleeding out from being stabbed to the point of death, and together they’d gone on to change Aro and his twin sister, Didyme. Marcus let the tiniest of smiles slip to his lips. Didyme. She had been the love of his life, and oh how he did miss her, but her death was his own fault. He had chosen to make his den with vipers.  
“Reminiscing?” A soft but sharp female voice cut the room. Marcus looked to the sound to find his brother’s dark-haired mate there.  
“Pici.”  
“Marcus.”  
“What are you doing here?”  
“Word makes it around the castle pretty fast. My mate may not realize that, but I’d be a fool to pass up on an opportunity to come back home. At least in your company, I’ll be safe.” Marcus barked out a sharp laugh.  
“My strength has waned, Pici.” He replied. “I am not the daughter of a warlord either.”  
“You are Agrippa, though. Aro has pampered me. I’m afraid I’ve lost much of my training.” Marcus agreed quietly. “You as well?”  
“Yes.” He murmured. “I’m afraid so.”  
“You, Agrippa? You really believe that?” Sulpicia asked.  
“You know damn well the only reason Aro didn’t run to that fight in Washington was because Alice Cullen showed him a vision in which the Volturi fell.” Marcus replied. “We had numbers. We had gifts. And still we fell. We are not what we used to be. We used to be…”  
“Strong. We used to not have to rely on the backs of gifted vampires.” Sulpicia finished. “We were us. We were strong by the labor of our own hands and backs. Such times…” She smoothed her hand over a dust-covered table, revealing the polish still there beneath. “Such times have been lost to us.”  
“So, let’s bring it back.” It was Sulpicia’s turn to laugh.  
“You jest, Marcus.” But she saw the look on his face. “You… are serious? But the threat has been quelled!”  
“The threat was never quelled, Pici.” Marcus replied. “The Cullen’s had an advantage over us. They have that knowledge. They know if they gather allies and stand against us, we will not win. So who’s to say that they’ll stop just because a battle was averted? That’s not how you win a war!”  
“Are we at war?!” Sulpicia asked. “It’s Carlisle we’re talking about!”  
“He has a family! Do you see us calling the Volturi that?! We would soon as sacrifice our lesser members if it came to a fight and you are damn well aware of that fact! You know Aro would soon as turn on you if he knew it would save his own skin!”  
“He would not!”  
“Look what he did to Didyme!” Marcus replied hotly. Silence fell over the room as Sulpicia processed this.  
“Aro… killed Didyme?” She finally asked, her voice sad.  
“Don’t play coy with me. You cannot seriously believe his outlandish lie about werewolves after we all know that Caius hunted them to near extinction! It was obvious! I wanted to leave and Aro said no. So he got rid of the one thing that made me want to leave! He got rid of the one thing I loved most and tied me to the Volturi and kept me complacent enough so that I wouldn’t be irrational and get myself killed!” Marcus snapped, chest heaving in anger.  
“I… didn’t know.” Sulpicia murmured. “He never indicated… We don’t talk about her. I’m sorry, Marcus. I… I didn’t… I wasn’t… I’m so sorry.” Marcus turned on his heel, getting ready to leave when she spoke again. “I don’t mean to be rude, but if Aro kept you complacent to the Volturi, complacent enough to never leave the castle, then why are you here now? Are you… no longer bound to the Volturi?”  
This stopped him in his tracks. He was angry, yes, but he hadn’t been angry in centuries. He hadn’t felt anything other than loyalty to the Volturi that Aro had made it into in millennia. He used to feel numb, but even then, Corin’s power had slowly chipped away at that and replaced it with some manner of contentedness.  
“You felt a need to come here. What’s here that could have done so? Is there something out there in the world that is calling to you?” Sulpicia asked.  
“There is only one thing, Sulpicia. But what you speak of, that isn’t possible.” Marcus replied.  
“Il compagna. A mate, right?” Sulpicia asked. Marcus paused, turning to her, slightly bewildered.  
“Why now?” Marcus asked, not really directing it at Sulpicia, but just questioning in general. “Why bring me here?” He wandered the halls of the compound, still lost in reminiscing. Sulpicia followed shortly after.  
“What do you think happened?” She finally asked, seeing signs of a battle lost.  
“Wolves.” Marcus gestured to the bony skeletal remains of werewolves that dotted the compound.  
“Some of these wolves were men.” Sulpicia examined the remains closely. “Lycans. Hm… I’d give anything to see my mother and father again. Sometimes, I can just be near you and it helps. Helps me remember them, helps me remember the life I had here.”  
“You will always be more than welcome to my presence, sister.” Marcus murmured, looking on the statue of all that remained of the Rosso clan. Sabine and Pietro had been lost to the vampire world. He wasn’t even sure they were alive. If they were, they had to be in hiding. Viktor had been killed in the raids. Gemma was never heard from again. Michael and his mate had stood to the end with Viktor and ended up sacrificing themselves for their children’s escape.  
So here he was, over nineteen centuries later, in a ruined compound with no ties to his coven and a call that told him to keep moving. “You aren’t going back, are you?” Sulpicia asked. Marcus just shook his head.  
“I’m curious now.”  
“Good luck to you, Marcus.”  
“Stay on alert, Pici. Enemies are everywhere.” Marcus replied, heading out into the night.


End file.
